The Doldrums

Imagine being at sea. Not in some glamorous cruise ship with deck chairs and midnight buffets. No, this would be an old ship. The hull is patched tight with tar and pitch. The decks are rough wood, worn smooth by the daily scouring of salt water and the constant tread of bare feet. The sky is brilliant blue, cloudless. You are surrounded by the smells of saltwater, fish and sweat. It's hot, for the sun is high and there is no wind. The big canvas sails hang limp from the masts. There's no breeze, not even a stirring of air. The sea is becalmed, still as glass in every direction. All around you the sailors are unnaturally quiet. They look restless, but oddly listless as well. The captain paces, stopping periodically to squint up into the sky. It's the dreaded doldrums. For four days your ship has been trapped in a calm. No wind to move you forward. No currents to drift you along. Water is being rationed and your mouth is dry as cotton. The only thing your ship can do is wait. Wait and pray for the wind.

For those in our Thursday study you will recognize that paragraph taken from our book, Managing Your Moods by Women of Faith. The author's description of the doldrums was so well described that you could almost feel you were there. It gives a perfect picture of those times when we, again as the book describes, are in "seasons of waiting, dry spells, and times of dullness". We can at times, absolutely out of the blue, find ourselves in the doldrums, an emotional state all its own.

The ladies shared today their definition of the doldrums. Carrie mentioned a word which has become a family favorite. Mumfy - the state of feeling discontent, listless, at loose ends. I absolutely love that word. Think I will add it to my "funky word" vocabulary list.

Theresa shared a list of things that came to her as she did her lesson this week: burned out, listless, weary, faint, weak, burdened, thirsty, dull-hearted, unresponsive, to name just a few. (It's the teacher in her.)

When we looked at the word, dull or dull hearted, as referenced in Jeremiah 10:21, Acts 28:27 and Hebrews 5:11-14 (#3, pg 51) we see three different words in Hebrew and Greek.
bawar - stupid, dull hearted, unreceptive.
pachuno - render the soul dull or callous.
nothros - slothful, lazy, without energy.

The doldrums at times are a time of dullness, when life just seems blah. In fact, Elizabeth described it well Thursday evening when she said, "when things just aren't moving along in your life." We feel spiritually lazy, weary and our hearts can become quite dull because of the eerie calm of the moment.

Interestingly, many gals in the study, including myself, felt the scriptures referenced in the first part of the lesson really didn't match what we personally felt this emotion was all about. At least not until the author began to describe her philodendron plants. All of her other plants needed constant attention to survive, but her philodendron was virtually indestructible. "They even bounce back if you forget to water them for a week or so." She compared this to herself in those times when she neglects the spiritual needs of her heart. When we neglect our relationship with God we can experience dry spells, or as she referred to it, drought.

That word drought reminded me of a wonderful passage from Jeremiah 17:7-8, just preceding our verse from previous weeks on our deceitful hearts. It reads:

Blessed is the man (woman) who trusts in the Lord
and whose trust is the Lord.
For he (she) will be like a tree planted by the water,
that extends its roots by a stream.
And will not fear when the heat comes, but its leaves will be green.
And it will not be anxious in a year of drought
nor cease to yield fruit.

When we as women have rooted ourselves in God's word, in His truth, in His grace, in His love through prayer, study of the word, fellowship with other committed believers our roots go wide and deep. So grounded in fact will those roots be, that as the years and circumstances of life go on we find ourselves stronger at each new season. So that even when the doldrums or drought comes, those times of listlessness, dullness, complacency fall upon us, we can turn to the One who will once again strengthen us. Over time we will find ourselves growing in steadfastness, much like the tree of Jeremiah 17:8.

These dry seasons are bound to come. When they do, we can take the wonderful council found in Isaiah 40:28-30,
Have you never heard?
Have you never understood?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of all the earth.
He never grows weak or weary.
No one can measure the depths of his understanding.
He gives power to the weak
and strength to the powerless.
Even youths will become weak and tired,
and young men will fall in exhaustion.
But those who WAIT on the Lord will find new strength.
They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
They will walk and not faint.

That word wait in verse 31 can be easily interchanged with the words, trust or hope in, depending on the version you read.

When I think of the dreaded doldrums, waiting is a key word to me. Last week we shared a great deal about how God knows our needs and always comes through for us. But we all have to admit that God doesn't always answer our prayers or unmet needs as quickly as we would like. I mentioned this last week in the blog on worries that if God knows you have an immediate need He will meet it immediately. However, sometimes God answers in His own good time and own good way, depending on what He knows is our deepest need. He knows what we need in the deepest parts of our hearts and will at times withhold giving us what we ask for so that He might do a work in us and in others.

There was a time in my life where God placed me in a "waiting room". For many years I cried out to Him a heartfelt prayer which He was, in my thinking, way too slow to answer. One day in prayer, I once again cried out, asking why He was taking so long to answer something so seemingly good. His answer, spoken clearly to my heart was, "Edna, if I had answered that prayer according to your timetable, in your way, you and I would not have what we have today." That blew me away. Still does, quite frankly, as I ponder His loving ways. He knew all along that those times of crying out to Him were times He would use to grow me, to set my roots deep, to intensify my relationship with Him.

Sweet sister, those seasons of waiting in your own life are times when God can do work in your heart. Those doldrums you dread so much are a tool in God's hands. He wants you to "choose" Him at these times instead of your own thoughts of what you think is best. And you must be very careful in these waiting seasons to not let your thoughts lead you from the doldrums to doubt to discouragement and from there even into despair. Let your mind rest on Him and His goodness, His faithfulness by going to His word, even when your moods and emotions tells you otherwise.

We finished today's study with words from David in Psalm 27:13-14 (3(, pg 53):

I would have despaired if I had not believed
that I would see the goodness of the Lord in
the land of the living.
Wait for the Lord.
Be strong and let your heart take courage;
yes, wait for the Lord.

I encourage you to write that passage down and post it somewhere in your home where you can refer to it often. In fact, just put it to memory so when those dreaded doldrums suddenly appear you have truth to run to. Something which will help you become rooted and grounded in your God and His truth.